Arsenal secured another Premier League victory at the weekend as Mikel Arteta’s men beat Leeds United 1-0 at Elland Road.
Despite having a delay at the start of proceedings due to electronic issues, the match ended up being full of talking points around VAR and refereeing decisions.
During his Ref Watch segment with Sky Sports, former top-flight referee Dermot Gallagher shared his verdict on one incident in the game which saw VAR overturn the on-field referee’s decision to send off Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhaes and award Leeds a penalty after the Brazilian was sent off for kicking out at Patrick Bamford upon being shoved by the English striker.
Gallagher’s verdict
Giving his take on the matter, Gallagher said: “I think this is a really interesting incident because the referee doesn’t give anything. He goes across to the assistant, and he says he thinks Gabriel has kicked out violently, so it has to be a penalty because the ball was in play.
“So he’s given a penalty and a red card. You see quite clearly that Patrick Bamford has committed a foul and then the kick is petulant, it’s unsporting, but it’s not violent. So when he goes to the TV monitor VAR tells him to have another look and ultimately the right decision is made.
“There’s no doubt Gabriel has flicked out, I think it’s petulant, reckless at worst but it’s not violent for me. It would be very unfair for a centre-half to be serving a three-match ban for what wasn’t an act of violent conduct.”
Big relief for Arsenal
With Gabriel having avoided a three-match ban as a result of the initial red card being overturned, this will surely be a big relief for everyone at Arsenal.
Just looking at his performance against Leeds, the 24-year-old blocked four shots, made four clearances, three interceptions and three tackles and won eight of his nine duels, more duels than any other Arsenal defender at Elland Road on Sunday.
Having also made more clearances (47) than any of his team-mates throughout the campaign so far, this also highlights how crucial a player the Brazilian is for Arteta and why the avoidance of a three-match suspension will be a big positive for them as they continue their Premier League title charge.
